SSE Texture problem: looks fine in Nifskope... awful in-game!

[cumbrianlad]

Solved. (see later text for the solution)

 

Hi.

 

just when one problem gets sorted, another rears its head!

 

Take a gander at the attached screenshot in my test cell, if you could.

 

The 2 dwemer handrails you can see were made by the exact same process. I've got other longer versions and every one looks fine, like the one on the left, in Nifscope, CK and in-game. The short rail also looks just fine in Nifskope.

 

The short one in-game (screenshot)... well, it's a mess.

 

I tried making new diffuse and normal textures with half the level of detail and assigning those to the rail in Nifskope but that made no difference in game.

 

The nifs have all been optimized and sanitized... only that one short bar looks crazy.

 

Any ideas?

 

Reference: textures are dwemermetaltiles03, dwemermetaltiles03_n and bronze_e cubemap in all cases.

 

Solution.

 

The problem was that I was using an original Skyrim mesh so that I could use transform: scale vertices. I did this because I wanted a number of poles at different lengths but all the same thickness for my handrails.

 

I originally used 'scale vertices' on the tri-shape but found that the collision was left unaltered, so it was the wrong length in each case: either you could walk through one end of each rail or you'd bang into a railing that wasn't there at one end. My 'fix' for this was to use transform: edit on the BSfadeNode, then 'scale vertices' on the tri-shape to restore the proper thickness to each pole. This is what screwed up the textures, it seems.

 

The solution is as follows.

 

1. Open the original Skyrim pole nif in nifskope.

2. Delete the BHKcollisionObject

3. Apply new textures.

4. use 'scale vertices' on the tri-shape to get the right x,y and z dimensions.

5. Optimize and sanitize, rename and save. Leave this window open.

6. Open up the newly saved nif in a second window (window 2).

7. (Window 2) Follow the procedure 'Exporting meshes to creation kit' from CreationKit.com, to generate a new BHKcollisionObject block.*

8. (Window 2) Copy that block and close this window without saving.

9. Copy the block into the 0BSfadeNode of the first Nifscope window.

10. Right click the 0BSfadeNode, select flags and accept the dialog box that opens.

11. Optimize, sanitize and save.

 

Now I have railings the shape I want, with correct textures and collision that fits perfectly around each one.

 

* I skipped the step about resizing the mesh here, because I couldn't see why I'd want a tiny collision object inside the pole. What I did seems to work fine in game. If it turns out that the collision should be inside the block, I can scale vertices leaving z (my length) at 1 and setting x and y to something less than 1.

[c0ax599]

Thanks for posting. I bookmarked in case I run into it someday. All info helps!

c0AX599

[thumbincubation]

Glad to see you got it working. That scale vertices feature is a wonder, eh? I don't know why it isn't present in SSE meshes.

[cumbrianlad]

Thanks both.

 

Agreed thumbincubation, that feature should never have been dropped. It is now my best friend, but being able to generate collision meshes for statics so easily (once I found that creationkit.com page) was a bit of a revelation, too... no more using a mesh with a roughly similar shape to rob the collision from it... just take 2 minutes to generate collision exactly the same shape as your object.

 

I guess it wouldn't be advisable to use it for complex meshes since it will increase file size too much but for things like that pole its ideal... it just generates a simple cuboid with 8 vertices. I'll post a pic of a completed dwemer façade piece once I've done one properly...

 

... you can now proudly declare that you've played a major role in eliminating sh**e dwemer hitch posts from my dungeon! Those blasted things annoy me every time I play Skyrim.

 

I just couldn't stand the idea that the dwarven dungeons were all gleaming and high tech but I'm supposed to believe they would have used rubbish metal rings that corroded and something as mundane as a bit of old rope to stop themselves falling to their deaths!

 

It's what comes of being an engineer, I suppose.

 

The only downside is that it'll take a bit more doing to Fus-Ro-Dah the enemies off the bridges but I like a challenge.

[thumbincubation]

*takes bow* :smile:

 

That just means you have to go low, fus ro da them up and over. The ultimate uppercut.

 

I...er...may or may not do this to Ancano, every time I step into the Hall of Elements. :whistling:

Edited February 21, 2019 by thumbincubation